We are excited to share the great work that Emmelie Paquette and co-authors did learning from Uqsuqtuurmiut knowledge of connections between caribou movements and sea ice conditions around Qikiqtaq (King William Island)!

“Seasonal Sea Ice Conditions Affect Caribou Crossing Areas Around Qikiqtaq, Nunavut: Uqsuqtuurmiut Knowledge Guides Ice Chart Analysis” (article in Arctic, volume 76, issue 1)

“Building on previous caribou research in Uqsuqtuuq (Gjoa Haven, Nunavut), we explored the connections between caribou and sea ice phenology in 5 community-identified caribou crossing areas around Qikiqtaq (King William Island). We defined freeze-up and breakup based on Uqsuqtuurmiut (people of Uqsuqtuuq) knowledge of caribou habitat requirements, to orient our analysis to the complex and multifaceted hazards that caribou can encounter while moving through their dynamic and unpredictable sea ice habitat. We investigated the reliability of caribou sea ice habitat surrounding Qikiqtaq, prioritizing key transitional periods with intensified caribou movement…We encourage others to consider the needs of wildlife sea ice users when assessing or providing ice information.”